Recoil pad

ABSTRACT

A recoil pad for shoulder fired firearms comprises an open cellular material and fluid enclosed in a flexible container. The container is attachable to the butt end of the firearm stock.

United States Patent Webb [45] Oct. 10, 1972 RECOIL PAD 1,774,060 8/1930 Hodge ..42/74 72 Inventor: George Webb Richmond Ind. 2,438,142 3/1948 Brower ..42/74 779,461 1/1905 Benton ..42/74 1 Asslgnee= Avco Corporation, Rlchmond 2,468,349 4/1949 Stewart ..42 74 [22] Filed: Aug. 17, 1970 Primary Examiner-Ben amin A. Borchelt [21] Appl. No.. 64,235 Assistant Examiner-C. T. Jordan Attorney-Charles M. Hogan and Eugene C. Goodale [52] US. Cl ..42/74 51 Int. Cl. ..F41c 23/00 ABSTRACT [58] Field of Search ..42/74 A recoil pad for shoulder fired firearms comprises an. 56 R f cud open cellular material and fluid enclosed in a flexible 1 e erences 1 container. The container is attachable to the butt end UNITED STATES PATENTS of the firearm Stockl,4l8,532 6/1922 Caldwell ..42/74 2 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures P'A'TE'N'TEDucr 10 m2 INVENTOR. GEORGE WEBB ATTORNEYS.

RECOIL PAD BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a novel and improved shock absorbing article and more particularly to a shock absorbing recoil pad adaptable to be applied to the butt end of gun stocks.

It is a well-known law that for every action there is a reaction. When applied to armament and guns, this means that on firing of every shell therefrom, the force required to propel the shell will also develop a recoil force which is transmitted through the gun to the one firing the firearm. The recoil forces depend upon the gauge size of the gun and the amount of the propellant charge. There are many known devices for attachment to the end of the gun stock to lessen the effect of the recoil force. These devices range from very simple foam pads such as disclosed in Pachmayr, U.S. Pat. No. 3,514,889 to very complex mechanisms built into the gun stock such as shown in Eastin, U.S. Pat. No. 3,491,473.

An object of this invention is to provide a recoil pad which is simple in construction but highly efficient in reducing recoil forces.

Another object of this invention is to provide a recoil pad adaptable to be mounted on the butt end of any gun stock.

A further object is to provide a recoil pad which converts the kinetic energy of recoil forces into turbulent and viscous flow energy thereby causing a dampening of the recoil forces.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention provides a unique gun recoil pad which will convert the kinetic energy of recoil force into turbulent and viscous flow energy thereby causing a dampening of the recoil force. This is accomplished by the attachment of an enclosed fluid-filled, open cell foam recoil pad to the butt end of the gun stock.

Other details, uses and advantages of this invention will become apparent as the following description of the exemplary embodiments thereof presented in the accompanying drawings proceeds.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The accompanying drawings show present exemplary embodiments of this invention in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevation view of the recoil pad attached to a gun stock;

FIG. 2 is a cross section view of the recoil pad of this invention; and

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary cross section of the recoil pad showing another embodiment of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENTS Reference is now made to FIGS. 1 and 2 which illustrate one exemplary embodiment of the improved recoil pad of this invention which is designated generally by the reference numeral and is seen to be mounted to the end of a stock 12 of a typical shoulder fired firearm. The recoil pad 10 comprises an impervious inner elastic or rubber-like boot 14. The boot 14 is open at one end so as to receive the end of the gun stock 12. A second or outer boot 16 is secured to the inner boot 14 by any suitable means such as vulcanization. The boot 16 is open at one end and is of an impervious elastic or rubber-like material.

The closed ends of boots 14 and 16 define a chamber 18 to hold the materials forming the recoil pad. The material comprises an open cellular foam 20 which is impregnated with a fluid such as water or alcohol. The fluid fills substantially all the open pores or cells of the foam material 20.

The outer end of boot 16 is of a resilient material so that when the firearm is raised to the firing position, the boot l6 conforms to the shoulder of the person so as to give a good pressure distribution. When the gun is fired, the recoil forces and energy of the gun will compress the pad and part of this energy will be stored as elastic energy in the elastic material, i.e., the boots and foam material. The recoil force compresses the foam 20 causing the initially stationary fluid to flow through the cells of the foam. The flow through action converts the kinetic energy of the recoil forces into turbulent and viscous flow energy thereby lessening the recoil or kick of the gun. The open cell foam which is used to dampen the fluid flow gives progressive dampening during the shock absorbing since the foam pores are compressed to become smaller. Impact cushioning control of the recoil pad can be achieved by varying one or more of the fluid density, fluid viscosity, pore size and pore density. Since these four functions are continuous in nature, it is readily apparent that the degree of control or cushioning is infinite. Due to the resiliency of the recoil pad 10, boots and foam, the recoil pad will return to its initial shape after each use.

Another exemplary embodiment of this invention is illustrated in FIG. 3 of the drawing which shows a fragmentary section of the recoil pad. The recoil pad illustrated in FIG. 3 is very similar to the recoil pad 10; therefore, such recoil pad will be designated generally by the reference numeral 10A and parts of the recoil pad 10A which are very similar to corresponding parts of the recoil pad 10 will be designated by the same reference numeral as recoil pad 10 also followed by the letter designation A and not described again. The main difference between the recoil pad 10A and the recoil pad 10 is that a plurality of small tubes 22 are utilized. The axes of the tubes 22 are transverse to the direction of the impact or recoil forces. When the gun is fired, the fluid held in the chamber 18A reacts similar with the tubes 22 as previously described with regard to the open cell foam 20. Thus, a dampening of the recoil forces again takes place due to the conversion of the kinetic forces to viscous and turbulent flow energy.

Although the recoil pad 10 has been described with particular reference to a construction in which open ended boots are used, it is apparent that other designs could be used. As an example, the inner boot member 14 might be a plate which is attached by glue or the like to the end of the gun stock. All that is necessary is that there be designed a chamber which encloses the fluid filled, open cell foam recoil material.

It can be seen that this invention provides a firearm recoil pad which is highly efficient yet simple in construction. The recoil pad provides shock absorption by conversion of kinetic energy into viscous and turbulent flow energy.

While present exemplary embodiments of this invention have been illustrated and described, it will be recognized that this invention may be otherwise variously embodied and practiced by those skilled in the art.

What is claimed is:

l. A recoil pad for attachment to shoulder fired firearms comprising:

a first impervious member;

a second resilient impervious member secured to said first member, said first and second members defining a chamber therebetween;

an open cellular foam material secured in said chamber;

a liquid filling substantially all the open pores of said material; and

means for mounting said first member to the end of a firearm stock wherein the kinetic energy of recoil forces which are transmitted to the liquid impregnated material within said chamber is converted to viscous and turbulent flow energy to cause dampening of the recoil forces. 2. A recoil pad for attachment to shoulder fired firearms comprising: 

1. A recoil pad for attachment to shoulder fired firearms comprising: a first impervious member; a second resilient impervious member secured to said first member, said first and second members defining a chamber therebetween; an open cellular foam material secured in said chamber; a liquid filling substantially all the open pores of said material; and means for mounting said first member to the end of a firearm stock wherein the kinetic energy of recoil forces which are transmitted to the liquid impregnated material within said chamber is converted to viscous and turbulent flow energy to cause dampening of the recoil forces.
 2. A recoil pad for attachment to shoulder fired firearms comprising: a first impervious member; a second rEsilient impervious member secured to said first member, said first and second members defining a chamber therebetween; a plurality of small diameter elastic tubes secured in said chamber; a liquid filling substantially all said tubes and chamber; and means for mounting said first member to the end of a firearm stock wherein the kinetic energy of recoil forces which are transmitted to said defined chamber is converted to viscous and turbulent flow energy to cause dampening of the recoil forces. 